Fender amp serial number and date code lookup

Reviewed 2026-10-152 primary sourcesSee sources

Fender says the serial number of an amp made before 1994 can’t date it, because records were never kept. Instead, read the two-letter date code on the QA sticker or the tube chart, or the code stamped on a transformer.

Covers: Fender amplifiers with a tube chart code (1951–1969), a QA sticker code (1990–2000) or an EIA transformer code.

Where to find the serial number

• The serial number is on the back of the cabinet or chassis.^[2]
• The QA date-code sticker is a black-and-silver sticker on the back of the chassis; the tube location chart is inside the cabinet.^[1]

Formats Fender amp publishes

The decoder checks your number against each of these. A number can fit more than one era; the decoder then shows every possible reading.

QA sticker codeQA sticker on the back of the chassis, 1990–2000

The last two letters on the QA sticker are the year (A = 1990) and the month (A = January). Fender publishes year letters only up to K (2000).^[1]

Tube chart codeTube location chart inside the cabinet, 1951–1969

A rubber-stamped pair of letters anywhere on the tube chart gives the year (A = 1951) and month (A = January).^[1]

Transformer code, 3 digitsEIA 606 code on a 1960s transformer

After 606, the first digit is the year of the 1960s and the next two are the week. Fender suggests adding about six months for the time parts sat in stock.^[1]

Transformer code, 4 digitsEIA 606 code on a transformer

After 606, the first two digits are the year and the last two the week. This dates the transformer, so add about six months for stock time.^[1]

Worked examples

• CE: On a QA sticker CE is May 1992 (Fender’s example); the same letters on a tube chart would read May 1953, so check which label you’re reading.^[1]
• EIA 606-4-21: Week 21 of 1964 (Fender’s example); the amp was likely built some months later.^[1]

What the serial can’t tell you

• Fender says dating amps made before 1994 by serial number is all but impossible because records were never kept.^[1]
• Chart results are approximations, not exact build dates.^[1]
• A transformer code dates the part, which may have been in stock for months.^[1]
• The same two letters mean different years on a QA sticker and on a tube chart.^[1]
• QA sticker year letters after K (2000) aren’t published.
• Fender doesn’t publish speaker or potentiometer date-code formats.